Experience Requirements Committee

As per Section 13(3)b of the Architects Act, the Registrar, on their own initiative, can (and on the request of an applicant, shall) refer an application for the issuance of licence to the ERC for a determination as to whether the applicant has met the experience requirements prescribed by the Regulations for the issuance of licence.

Additionally, the Committee will determine as to whether the applicant has met the experience requirements prescribed by the Regulations for the issuance of licence in matters related to Exemption Requests to Council as set out in Section 33 of the Regulations.

The Committee comprises the following members appointed by Council:

• at least one elected member of the Council; and
  
• at least three members of the Association who are not on Council.

Typically, the Vice President Regulatory sits as Chair, with OAA staff support provided by the Registrar and the Administrator Licence.

The ERC meets approximately nine times a year and operates on a calendar basis. Its work can also be conducted in a spontaneous manner between formal meetings.

To see its current membership, click here.

Once an applicant has confirmed acceptance of an assessment interview with the Experience Requirements Committee, they receive the following information five weeks in advance of the assessment interview date:

• confirmation of date, time, and location;
  
• confirmation of assessment platform (Virtual or In-Person);
  
• guidelines for virtual assessments;
  
• request for required documentation;
  
• list of all ERC members (to identify any conflict of interest);
  
• guidelines for applicant questioning; and
  
• summary of grading.

Applicants will be requested to submit the following as part of the application:

• a list of all buildings for which they have been personally involved in the employment and under the personal supervision and direction of an architect—over the past five years—that indicates the type, size, cost, and date for each;
  
• a detailed description of their involvement and specific role on two projects that offer examples of work experience, submitted inclusive of architectural documentation (i.e. construction documents and contract administration material); and
  
• an explanation of how the applicant’s experience is relevant to the practice of architecture in Ontario.
  
  The ERC will examine an applicant’s knowledge and skill on all aspects of architectural practice in Ontario, from early stages of design through to construction. The Committee is supplied with the following information in advance of the assessment interview:
  
  
• reason for assessment interview;
• applicant’s projects that form part of the assessment documentation (and description of the applicant’s);
  
• if available, number of hours completed in Internship in Architecture Program (IAP) inclusive of the applicant’s list of projects from their Canadian Experience Record Book (CERB);
• if available, background information including:
  
  o graduation and degree details;
  o Canadian Architectural Certification Board (CACB) certification number and year granted;
  o Examination for Architects in Canada (ExAC) results and year(s) passed;
  o OAA Admission Course (year completed);
  o list of projects;
  o breakdown of all reviewed and approved experience including hours, dates, and employer;
  

• applicant’s rationale as to why international experience is relevant to the practice of architecture in Ontario; and
  
• current employment.

During the assessment interview, an applicant can expect the following sequence of procedures:

1. The Chair pre-determines the assessment questions and distributes them by sections to the various ERC members prior to the applicant joining the room.
   
2. The applicant has a five minutes at the beginning of the assessment to introduce themselves and elaborate on their experience, clarify their project submissions, and explain their personal history. The Committee may ask questions to seek clarity.
   
3. The assessment interview proceeds in a questions-and-answer manner.
   
4. The applicant may have access to the Ontario Building Code, as well as their submitted documents, for reference. Otherwise it is a closed book assessment, no other material or resources may be used.
   
5. The applicant may be asked to sketch building details during the assessment. This may be done virtually via a digital drawing interface or in person with pen and paper—the format will depend on the assessment setting.
   
6. The applicant will have the assessment questions displayed and read aloud. Translators may also be made available on request. Responses to the assessment questions are scored by each ERC member present within the assessment decision matrix.
   
7. Once the assessment question period is complete, the Chair will ask the applicant to leave the room while the Committee deliberates and makes its determination.
   
8.  The ERC may determine that the applicant has met the experience requirements prescribed by the regulations for the issuance of the licence or that remedial steps are required for the issuance of licence. Remedial steps may include further experience, attendance at courses, or other actions the Committee feels will address areas of demonstrated deficiency.
   
9.  The applicant is then asked to rejoin the group and is presented the ERC determination. This determination requires the vote of a majority of the Committee members present at the meeting, including those deemed to be present at a meeting under paragraph 7 of subsection 8 (1) of the Act. O. Reg. 287/99, s. 3. The Committee’s written determination is subsequently sent to the applicant within seven days of the assessment.

Application

Any prospective OAA licence applicant seeking more information on the Experience Requirements Committee should contact Camelia Bostan, Administrator Licence.